NIST Monograph 91: Automatic Indexing: A State-of-the-Art Report

	NIST Monograph 91: Automatic Indexing: A State-of-the-Art Report Table of Contents
Page
Abstract			1
1. Introduction			1
	1.1 Definitions and background		2
	1.2 Scope of this study		10
	1.3 Derivative vs. assignment indexing		13
2. Indexes compiled by machine			14
	2.1 Concordances and complete text processing		15
	2.2 Card catalogs, book catalogs, bibliographies and subject index listings prepared by machine		19
	2.3 Tabledex and other special purpose indexes		25
	2.4 Citation indexes		27
	2.5 Machine conversion from one index set to another		38
3. Indexes generated by machine - automatic derivative indexing			40
	3.1 KWIC indexes		40
		3.1.1 Applications of KWIC indexing techniques	41
		3.1.2 Advantages, disadvantages and operational problems of KWIC indexing	55
	3.2 Modified derivative indexing		68
		3.2.1 Title augmentation	68
		3.2.2 Book indexing by computer	71
		3.2.3 Modified derivative indexing - Baxendale's experiments	73
	3.3 Derivative indexing from automatic abstracting techniques		75
		3.3.1 Auto-condensation and auto-encoding techniques of H. P. Luhn	75
		3.3.2 Frequencies of word n-tuples - Oswald and others	79
		3.3.3 Relative frequency techniques - Edmundson and Wyllys, and others	81
		3.3.4 Significant word distances	83
		3.3.5 Uses of special clues for selection	84
		3.3.6 Recent examples of mixed systems experimentation	86
	3.4 Quality of modified derivative indexing by machine		89
4. Automatic assignment indexing techniques			91
	4.1 Swanson and later work at Thompson Ramo Wooldridge		91
	4.2 Maron's automatic indexing experiments		93
	4.3 Automatic indexing investigations of Borko and Bernick		94
	4.4 Williams' discriminant analysis method		97
	4.5 SADSACT		98
	4.6 Assignment indexing from citation data		99
	4.7 Similarities and distinctions among assignment indexing experiments		100
	4.8 Other assignment indexing proposals		105
5. Automatic classification and catagorization			106
	5.1 Factor analysis		108
	5.2 The theory of clumps		110
	5.3 Latent class analysis		113
	5.4 Examples of other proposed classificatory techniques		113
6. Other potentially related research			114
	6.1 Thesaurus construction, use and up-dating		114
	6.2 Statistical association techniques		118
		6.2.1 Devices to display associations: EDIAC	119
		6.2.2 Statistical association factors - Stiles	119
		6.2.3 The association map - Doyle and related work at SDC	122
		6.2.4 Work of Giuliano and associates, the ACORN devices	124
		6.2.5 Spiegel and others at Mitre Corporation	126
	6.3 Clues to index-term selection from automatic syntactic analysis		127
	6.4 Probabilistic indexing and natural language text searching		132
		6.4.1 Probabilistic indexing - Maron, Kuhns and Ray	133
		6.4.2 Natural language text searching - Swanson	134
		6.4.3 Full text searching - legal literature	135
	6.5 Other examples of related research in linguistic data processing		136
	6.6 Machine assistance in translations of subject content indications to special search and retrieval language		140
	6.7 Example of a proposed indexing system utilizing related research techniques		142
7. Problems of evaluation			143
	7.1 Core problems		145
	7.2 Bases and criteria for evaluation of automatic indexing procedures		149
		7.2.1 The Cranfield project	150
		7.2.2 O'Connor investigations	151
		7.2.3 Questions of comparative costs	153
		7.2.4 Summary: potential advantages as bases for evaluation	156
	7.3 Findings with respect to inter-indexer and intra-indexer consistency		157
	7.4 Special factors and other suggested bases for evaluation		160
8. Operational considerations			164
	8.1 Questions of input		164
	8.2 Examples of processing considerations		168
	8.3 Output considerations		171
9. Conclusion: Appraisal of the state of the art in automatic indexing			173
Acknowledgements			182
Appendix A: List of references cited and selected bibliography			183
Appendix B: Progress and prospects in mechanized indexing			223
Appendix C: Selective bibliography of additional references			237

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Date created: Monday, 18-Sept-00

NIST Monograph 91:

Automatic Indexing: A State-of-the-Art Report

Table of Contents